Reply #43: (And territories) Puerto Rican officials fight to keep English off ballots

[tbyg52]

In a role reversal of sorts, Puerto Rico election officials are fighting a federal court order to print ballots in English for the island's Nov. 4 general elections.

The court mandate was in response to a lawsuit brought by two residents who claimed they were left out of the commonwealth's elections because they didn't understand the ballots, which are printed in Spanish.

Both plaintiffs are American citizens from the mainland, where English-only advocates have argued that bilingual ballots undermine national unity, increase the risk of election fraud and put an undue burden on state and local governments.

The decision by the San Juan federal court order puts a different spin on the issue of voting in more than one language.

"I'm not trying to ram English down people's throats," said Robert McCarroll, one of the plaintiffs. "But to me it is a basic issue of fairness."

More:
http://www.azcentral.com/news/articles/2008/09/09/20080909spanish-only0909-ON.html